Cocaine and Suicide: What is the Link?
1.5 million people are cocaine users, and the number of people trying it for the first time is increasing yearly. Suicide rates are increasing like just as significantly and the number of substance abusers who have attempted suicide is even higher (Platt). 5% of adults have thought about committing suicide in their life. There is all these statistics but what is the link? How does cocaine affect the mental stability of its users and how does it influence suicide?
Suicide is all over the world, and so is cocaine use. Many people are affected by one or the other and some are affected by both. Cocaine use rates are increasing yearly and many people have given up their lives to keep their addiction going. …show more content…
One of the most negative things cocaine addicts felt was the craving for more, they said it was harder to control than any other craving for drugs (Thane). Scientists did a study with monkeys to see if they would ignore the food they needed for survival for the cocaine they needed to fulfill their addiction and the monkey despite being on the verge of death, choose the cocaine. The monkey was thin, his ribs were visible and his fur was very dull and tangled. He was famished. The monkey had been taught to open two levers, one of which would have brought him the food he needed for his survival; but the other brought him what he craved most in the world: cocaine. The monkey wanted the cocaine more than life itself. The monkey ignored the food and just wanted the drug and took so much that he died of overdose. The scientists did the same study on other animals but none of them were affected as badly by the cocaine as the monkeys were. The combination of craving cocaine and violence can lead to the addict hurting somebody to get it, like with the case when four hostages were held for 30 hours, or the addict could just jump off a building because of them thinking they have super human abilities. Although cocaine is not only something to make the user violent, it can also give them mental disorders.This same thing happens with cocaine
1.5 million people are cocaine users, and the number of people trying it for the first time is increasing yearly. Suicide rates are increasing like just as significantly and the number of substance abusers who have attempted suicide is even higher (Platt). 5% of adults have thought about committing suicide in their life. There is all these statistics but what is the link? How does cocaine affect the mental stability of its users and how does it influence suicide?
Suicide is all over the world, and so is cocaine use. Many people are affected by one or the other and some are affected by both. Cocaine use rates are increasing yearly and many people have given up their lives to keep their addiction going. …show more content…
One of the most negative things cocaine addicts felt was the craving for more, they said it was harder to control than any other craving for drugs (Thane). Scientists did a study with monkeys to see if they would ignore the food they needed for survival for the cocaine they needed to fulfill their addiction and the monkey despite being on the verge of death, choose the cocaine. The monkey was thin, his ribs were visible and his fur was very dull and tangled. He was famished. The monkey had been taught to open two levers, one of which would have brought him the food he needed for his survival; but the other brought him what he craved most in the world: cocaine. The monkey wanted the cocaine more than life itself. The monkey ignored the food and just wanted the drug and took so much that he died of overdose. The scientists did the same study on other animals but none of them were affected as badly by the cocaine as the monkeys were. The combination of craving cocaine and violence can lead to the addict hurting somebody to get it, like with the case when four hostages were held for 30 hours, or the addict could just jump off a building because of them thinking they have super human abilities. Although cocaine is not only something to make the user violent, it can also give them mental disorders.This same thing happens with cocaine